Dan's Adventure

Following my post about being screwed over by World Nomads due to their handling of my insurance claim following my hospitalisation in New Zealand, the General Manager of World Nomads, Chris Noble, posted a comment stating that he would investigate my claim for me.

Chris contacted the underwriters in the UK and came to the conclusion that they had, in his opinion, made the correct decision to not send me back to the UK based upon the wording of my insurance policy. In his correspondence with me however, it transpired that the insurers would actually have paid for me to stay in a hotel whilst recovering in New Zealand, but that fact was unfortunately never communicated to me prior to this.

After a bit of further investigating, the decision was made by World Nomads to reimburse me for the costs I incurred returning to the UK. I am currently awaiting payment for my taxi from Auckland Hospital to the airport and the costs of changing my flights.

This outcome is obviously better than nothing, but its not ideal. The only reason that I am being reimbursed is because of the miscommunication on underwriter’s part. I am still rather annoyed that the opinion of the medical team treating me in Auckland was ignored and over ruled by a doctor in the UK who had not seen me. The whole episode has left me wondering whether I will bother with travel insurance in the future.

Six weeks after being hospitalised, I am still hobbling about on crutches and still certain that I made the correct decision in returning to the UK. There is no way that I could have gone on to backpack in South America. Even with the public transport here in the UK its a real struggle to get around with crutches, never mind crutches and a rucksack.

One day I will make it to South America.